Standard to drive modem market renaissance

The ratification of the V.90 ITU standard might seem to be a yawn, but for alert resellers, it could be the signal for a modem-led boon to sales.

So says Sirius Technologies business strat-egy manager Cam Wayland.

Commenting on the much-anticipated approval of the standard, Wayland said: "The ratification is a turning point for the modem industry."

Although consumers quickly embraced V.90 modems based on the February draft standard, corporates and ISPs, which are particularly standards driven, have mostly held off until V.90 was finally approved.

"This should result in significant growth in the corporate and government sectors, where 33.6Kbps modems are still heavily used.

Furthermore, as only a handful of ISPs currently offer V.90 services, the ITU's ratification should lead to rapid ISP adoption of V.90," he added.

According to Wayland, the average modem speed amongst Australians is 28.8Kbps, with a huge installed base of around 1.5 million non-56Kbps modems, and many users have delayed upgrading until V.90 ratification. He said that corporate customers especially will be more likely to upgrade now, with fewer doubts over interoperability and reliability making them confident to engage in a roll out of the faster products.

While the functionality is almost identical to the K56flex product, the standard V.90 modem is a little more robust in varying line conditions.

Wayland said that Sirius has been promo-ting dual mode products, which, while more expensive than some 56Kbps modems, eliminated the problem of compatibility with the customer's ISP.

History to repeat

He said that when the V.34 standard for 28.8Kbps modems was adopted, there was a dramatic surge in the uptake, and he expects this to be the same.

Wayland added that for some customers who have bought any Sirius brand K56flex products, it is worthwhile for resellers to remind them that they can upgrade the codes free from the relevant Web site.

"This sort of service also builds loyalty, both to the brand and the reseller," he concluded.

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